Pneumatic-action for musical instruments.



No. 7345979. PATENTED JULY 28, 1903.

H. TI SNELTON. PNBUMNTT-G ACTION TOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

APPLI'GATION FILED 00T. 30, 1962.

PATENTBD JULY 23,1903.

H.l T. SKELTON. I PNEUMATIG ACTION FOR MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

APPLICATION-FILED 00T. 30, 1902.

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UNITED STATES Patented July 2'8, 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

HORACE T. SKELTON, OF CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 734,979, dated .Tuly 28, 1903.

4 Application filed October 30, 1902. Serial No. 129,475. (No model.)

To all whom, t may concern:

Be it known that I, HORACE T. SKELToN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cambridge7 in the county of Middlesex and State of blassachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Pneumatic-Actions for Musical Instruments, of which the following is a speciiication.

My invention relates to pneumatic-actions for piano -players and other musical instruments, and has for its object to vary the action of the key-pneumatics to cause them to operate the key levers or iingers with more or less force according as it 'may be desired to emphasize or give expression to the notes or to soften the music.

Vith this object in view my invention consists in the combination, with the exhaustchest and the series of Valve-chambers connected therewith and communicating with the keyoperating pneumatics and with the eX- haust-chest by means of ports provided with valves operated by primary pneumatics, of a cut-off slide extending lengthwise of the valveboard in line with said ports to control the passage of the air from the valve-chambers to the exhaust-chest, whereby the amount of air allowed to pass through said ports maybe in'- creased or diminished at will to vary the action of the key-pneumatics, as hereinafter more fully described.

My invention also consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations of parts, as hereinafter described, and speciiically pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure lis a sectional elevation of a pneumatic valve action constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal vertical section of a portion of the action on the line 2 2 of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on the line 3 3 of Fig. l. Fig. e is a vertical section on the line 4C 4 of Fig. 5 looking in the direc- Fig. 5 is a vertical section on the line 5 5 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction of the arrow. Fig. 6 is a plan of a portion of the cut-off slide. Fig. 7 is a horizontal section on the line 7 7 of Fig. 4.

In the said drawings, A represents the longitudinal exhaust-chest, from which the air is exhausted in the usual manner through the downwardly-extending channel or passage 10,

Fig. 2, at one end thereof leading to the exhaust-bellows, (not shown,) by which the suction is maintained in said chest.

B denotes a series of separate and independent valve-chambers arranged upon the eX- haust chest and each communicating by means of a tube le with one of the key-operating pneumatics C, Fig'. 1, to the movable member 15,0f which is adj ustably secured one of the series of wires or rods 1G, which actuate the key-operating levers or fingers or other tone-producing devices.

Each of the valve-chambers B is connected with the exhaust-chest A by means of a port 17 in the valve-board 18, said port being controlled by a hinged valve 19, adapted to be lifted bythe stem 20 of a diaph ragni-pneumatic 21 in the diaphragm-board 22, the chamber 23 beneath which is connected by means of a flexible tube 24 with one of the ducts of the tracker 25. In the top plate 26 of each of the valve-chambers is an air-inlet port 27, across which extends a guide-bar 2S, through which passes the stem 29 of a valve 30, said stem 29 resting in a cavity in the upper face of the hinged valve 19, whereby as said valve is raised by the diaphragm-pneumatic 21 to allow the air to pass from the valve-chamber B to the exhaust-chest A, to thereby collapse the key-operating pneumatic C, the air-inlet valve 30 will be closed,as required,tobe again operated to admit the external air to the valvechamber on theclosing of the valve 19, the

operation of the above-described parts being substantially the same as in other pneumaticactions of this description. The front end 31 and the top plate 26 of each of the valvechambers B is made removable to aord convenientaccess to said chambers for the purpose of adjusting the valves or making repairs.

D is a long` cut-off slide which extends through the valve-board 18in the direction of its length and in line with the Valve-ports 17 said slide having tongues at its edges litting within guide-grooves 32 in said valveboard. This slide D is provided with a series of elongated vslots or openings 33, one for each port 17, with which they are adapted to wholly or partially register according to the position of the slide which is adapted to be moved by the hand of the operator through IOO the medium of a lever connected with the arm 34 of a short shaft 35, provided with a crank 36, which engages a pin 37, projecting from the slide D, as shown in 2, 4, and 5, whereby the latter may be moved against the resistance of a spring 3S., Fig. 4, by which the slide is normally maintained with its end against a stop l2, Fig. 5, in a position to bring the slots directly beneath the ports 17, as shown in Figs. 2 and 4, and thereby permit of the passage therethrough of the maximum quantity of air required to give full force to the instrument. The slots 33 are preferably made slightly longer than the diameter of ports to which they are applied, anda stop 40 is provided for limiting the movement of the slide in the opposite direction, said stop being so placed that a projection 41 on the slide will contact therewith before the slots have entirely passed out of register with the ports, as shown in Fig. 7, thereby preventing the air from being entirely cut oit' from said ports, in which case the notes would fail to be sounded.

When it is desired to reduce the volume of sound, and thus soften the notes, as in solo or melody parts of a tune, the slide D is moved by the operator against the resistance of the spring 3S to carry more or less of the length of each slot out of range with its port, thus reducing the area of the openings through which the air passes from the valve-chambers to the exhaust-chest, and thereby controlling the operation of the key-pneumatics and causing them to act with reduced force on the keyoperating iingers to soften the music as desired, while when it is desired to emphasize or give expression to any particular portion of the music it is merely necessary to move the slide in the opposite direction to bring more of the length of the slots into register with the ports which they control, thus causing the key-pneumatics to act suddenly with increased force and produce louder tones, as desired.

Instead of the valve-board being provided with a single cut-off slide D, extending from one end of said board to the other and controlling the entire series of valve-ports therein, it may be provided with two similar slides, one for the bass and the other for the treble notes, each slide being operated by a separate lever conveniently arranged for the hand of the operator.

Extending lengthwise through the diaphragm-board 22 is a supplemental exhaustchest 43, parallel with the exhaust-chest A and also communicating with the channel lO, leading to the exhaust-bellows. Through the vinner wall of this chest 43 are bored a series of passages 44, leading into the chambers 23 beneath the diaphragm-pneumatics 21, and over each of these passages 44 is secured a thin disk 45 of paper or like material having a small central perforation or pin-hole 8, through which the chamber 23 is vented, as is necessary to insure the quick closure of the valve 19 when the air is shut off from the corresponding duct of the tracker. To afford convenient accessto these disks 45, a large hole 46 is bored horizontally through the front side of the diaphragm-board 22 into the exhaust-chest 43 directly opposite to each of the passages 44, said'hole being of slightlygreater diameter than the paper disk 45 to enable a new disk to be passed through it and placed over the passage 44 in case of repairs being needed, the holes 46 being covered air-tight by means of a removable strip 9, held in place by screws 47. The holes 46 also afford a ready access to the disks to enable the vent-holes therein to be enlarged, by means of a suitable instrument, if found necessaryin regulating the valve-action and also facilitate the removal of any particles of dust which may have obstructed the vent-holes 8, which operations have heretofore been attended with much inconvenience on account of the necessity-of removing the action from the instrument and taking it apart, it being merely necessary with my improved construction to remove the strip 9, which, being on the front side of the action, can be easily reached.

Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. Inapneumatic-actionformusicalinstruments, the combination with the exhaustchest and the series of valve-chambers connected with said chest by means of valve-controlled ports, of a cut-off slide extending lengthwise of the valve-board in line with said ports and adapted to control the passage of the air through said ports, and means for operating said cut-off slide.

2. In a pneumatic-action for musical instruments, the combination with the exhaustchest and the series of valve-chambers connected therewith and each communicating with said chest by means of a port provided with a valve operated by a primary pneumatic, of a cut-off slide adapted to be operated by hand and arranged lengthwise of the valve-board in line with said ports, said slide having openings adapted to partially or wholly register with ysai-d valve-ports, whereby the passage of the air therethrough may be regulated by said slide to govern the action of the key-pneumatics.

A pneumatic-action for musical instruments comprising an exhaust-chest, a series of valve-chambers communicating with the keyoperating pneumatics and connected with said exhaust-chest by suitable ports, valves for said ports operated by primary pneumatics connected with a tracker, and a cut-off slide arranged lengthwise of the valve-board inline with said ports and adapted to control the passage of the air therethrough, and means for operating said cut-oif slide.

4. In a pneumatic-action for musicalinstruments, the combination with the exhaustchest, the valvechambers communicating therewitl1,tl1e valves therein and the valve-op- IOC) IIO

erating diaphragm-pneumaties having chamexhaust-chest through the outer face of the bers beneath the same communicating With diaphragm-board, whereby access can be had the tracker, of the diaphragm-board having` a to said disks, and a removable cover for said supplemental exhaust-chest parallel with the Openings. i

5 main exhaust-chest, passages leading` therefitness iny hand this 28th day of October, 15

from to the chambers beneath the dia- A. D. 1902. phraglns, each passage having;` its end covered HORACE T. SKE'LTON. with a disk perforated to form a vent, a series In presence ofof openings located directly opposite to said y P. E. TESCHEMACHER,

lo disks and extending from the supplemental F. B. SPAULDING. 

